Thread catch for winding machines



y 2 6 K. LAAGER 3,334,313

THREAD CATCH FOR WINDING MACHINES Filed Jan. 4, 1966 Fig. 1

INVENTOR 3 KHSPAR LHHGER Y WW6 7M WWW United States Patent 3,384,313 THREAD CATCH FOR WINDING MACHINES Kaspar Laager, Kusnacht, Zurich, Switzerland, as-

signor to Maschinenfabrik Scharer, Erlenbach, Zurich, Switzerland Filed Jan. 4, 1966, Ser. No. 518,698 Claims priority, application Switzerland, Feb. 18, 1965, 2,218/65 Claims. (Cl. 242-27) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A spindle winding machine is disclosed as including a spindle head fixed to rotate with a spindle about the spindle axis and having a substantially cylindrical surface coaxial with the spindle axis. A substantially cylindrical clamping sleeve is coaxially telescoped with the head and movable axially and rotationally relative to the head, with the head and the sleeve having a close fit such that the sleeve normally is rotated by the head. The head and the sleeve have facing end clamping surfaces, in the form of peripheral flanges, operable to clamp a thread therebetween.

The head is formed with the slot extending obliquely of its axis, and the sleeve has a pin engaged in this slot. Upon rapid angular acceleration of the head, the pin and the slot cooperate to move the sleeve axially inwardly of the head to interengage the clamping surfaces to clamp therebetween a thread caught by a thread catching formation on the sleeve.

Background of the invention The invention relates to a novel mechanism for catching, securing, and releasing the beginning of a thread to be wound on a spindle or spool.

Various arrangements are known for automatically catching the beginning of a thread in Winding machines having automatic spindle change. In these known devices centrifugal force, for example, is employed either to clamp or to unclamp the thread. The use of centrifugal force for clamping has the disadvantage that the thread remains clamped throughout the winding and is only released after the winding is completed. Thus, the thread cannot be concealed within the body of the thread, but rather remains outside of the wound thread, where it can be very troublesome. On the other hand, effecting the disengagement of the thread by centrifugal force is also disadvantageous because a separate device is then required for closing the clamp.

An object of the invention is a device for engaging and holding tight the beginning of a thread at the start of the winding and which device releases the beginning while the winding is still under way.

A further object of the invention is such a device that employs inertia.

These and further objects of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a winding machine embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded side elevation view of the spindle head and the sleeve;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the assembly of the spindle and the clamping sleeve; and

FIGURE 4 is a front view of the spindle head of FIG- URE 3 seen in the direction of arrow A.

Referring to FIGURE 1, two winding spindles 10, 11 are mounted on a disk 12. A second such disk 12 is connected to the first by a hollow shaft 13, which extends 3,384,313 Patented May 21, 1968 ICC to a support 14 for the ends of the spindle bodies 15, 16. A unitary structure comprised of elements 12 and 14 connected together by the shaft 13 is thus formed and is the spindle carrier. The lower spindle is shown wound. The spindle carrier is held by a round bar 13a and is auto matically moved step-wise along the length thereof during the winding of a spindle. Upon the winding being completed, the spindle carrier automatically executes a halfrevolution and returns to its original position, effecting the spindle change. As a consequence of the pivoting of the spindle carrier, the full spindle 11 is moved out of the work station and the empty spindle 15 introduced into it. While the spindle change is occurring, a hook needle 17, which is guided for movement longitudinally of the spindle carrier and which is automatically controlled in the required manner, brings the winding thread 18 close to the spindle head 19 located on the spindle 10. Since the spindle 10, in the position shown, is rotated through drive wheel 21 by a motor (not shown), a projection 22 (FIGURES 2, 3) on the spindle head 19 catches the thread 18 coming from a guide 23 and severs it, as will be further explained. During operation of the winding machine, the guide 23 swings with a constant deflection corresponding to the length of the spindle body 15. A second hook needle 17a is provided on the spindle carrier and is associated with the spindle 11.

Referring now to FIGURES 2-4, the spindle heads 19, 20 (FIGURE 1) each have two jackets 25, 26. The jacket 26 (left, FIGURE 2) is mounted inside jacket 25 for easy sliding and turning therein. To limit the axial and pivotal movement, jacket 26 has a pin 27, which extends into a longitudinal slot 28 provided in the wall of jacket 25. The axis of the slot is slanted to the right with respect to the axis of jacket 25, whereby when the inner jacket 26 is turned with respect to the outer jacket the pin and slot cause the inner jacket to move axially of the outer jacket. The pin 27 advantageously is made retractable in any known manner to permit inserting jacket 26 into jacket 25. As shown in FIG. 4, projection or bolt 27 is provided on the exterior surface of an arcuate leaf spring 31 which is not completely peripheral, so that it may deflect. Spring 31 is engaged with the inner cylindrical surface of sleeve 26 and the projection or pin 27 extends through a bore of sleeve 26. It will be readily appreciated that, by pushing downwardly on projection 27 spring 31 will give sufficiently to allow retraction of projection 27. The inner jacket also possesses a ring-shaped flange 29 which terminates in the above-noted projection 22 that catches the thread. During axial movement of the inner jacket 26 with respect to the outer jacket 25, the flange 29 can bear on the face 30 of jacket 25, whereby the thread 18 can be clamped between the flange 29 and the face 30.

The invention works in the following manner:

At the beginning of the winding, the guide 23 and hook needle 17 are mutually located so that the thread stretched therebetween is immediately caught by the projection 22 as soon as the spindle 10 begins to move clockwise, FIG. 4. At the same time the spindle head 19 is accelerated, whereupon, because of inertia, jacket 25 accelerates more rapidly than does jacket 26, resulting in a relative rotation between the jackets. The pin 27 and slot 28 combination simultaneously cause a corresponding axial movement of the inner jacket, causingthe thread to become clamped between the flange 29 and the face 30. The winding can now begin. As soon as the spindle head 19 reaches constant winding speed, the accelerative force disappears; and the thread, which is no longer clamped, can be withdrawn from its clamped location. Alternatively, an earlier release of the thread can be effected by slowing down the spindle.

The release of the beginning of the thread from the spindle to be wound makes it possible, during the winding, to conceal the beginning of the thread within the body of the thread wound. Because a projecting thread beginning can be very mischievous, the invention eliminates a potential source of considerable trouble.

Although the invention has been described as a catcher for threads, it obviously is suiatble also for filamentary material, yarns, fibres, etc.; and the word thread, as herein used, including in the claims, is to be interpreted broadly to include these other materials. The term spindle likewise is to be interpreted broadly to include spools, bobbins, etc., upon which thread might be wound.

I claim:

1. In a spindle Winding machine of the type in which, when a spindle at a work station is completely wound With thread, the Wound spindle is removed from the work station and an empty spindle positioned at the work station with the thread being passed from the wound spindle to the empty spindle, improved thread catching and clamping means comprising, in combination, a spindle head fixed to rotate with the spindle about the spindle axis and having a substantially cylindrical surface substantially coaxial Wtih said axis; a substantially cylindrical clamping sleeve coaxially telescoped with said substantially cylindrical surface and movable axially and rotationally relative to said spindle head, said head and said sleeve having a close fit such that said sleeve normally is rotated by said head and said head and said sleeve having facing end clamping surfaces operable to clamp a thread therebetween; said sleeve having a thread catching formation thereon; and interengageable means on said head and said sleeve limiting relative axial and rotational displacement thereof, said means, upon rapid angular acceleration of said head, displacing said sleeve axially of said head in a direction to interengage said clamping surfaces to clamp therebetween a thread caught by said formation.

2. The improvement claimed in claim 1, in which said substantially cylindrical surface is the surface of an axially outwardly opening recess in said head receiving said sleeve interiorly of said head; said formation being on the external periphery of said sleeve and forming part of a radially outwardly extending flange on said sleeve constituting one of said clamping surfaces.

3. The improvement claimed in claim 2, wherein said interengageable means comprises a projection on one of said head and said sleeve and a cooperating slot on the other of said head and said sleeve, said slot being slanted with respect to said axis, whereby relative rotational movement is permitted between said head and said sleeve and said sleeve simultaneously is caused to move translationally along said axis.

4. The improvement claimed in claim 3, wherein said projection is located on said sleeve and said slot on said head.

5. The improvement claimed in claim 4, wherein said projection is retractable.

6. The improvement claimed in claim 3, wherein said thread catching formation comprise a member that bears against said head, when said sleeve is in the thread clamping position, and which member includes second means for catching and severing the thread to form the beginning end of the thread to be Wound.

7. The improvement claimed in claim 6, wherein said member defines a portion of a ring extending from said sleeve transversely of said axis; said second means defining an end of said ring; said head defining a face having therein said recess, said face cooperating with said member to clamp the thread between said member and said face when said sleeve is in the thread clamping position.

8. The improvement claimed in claim 4, wherein the thread catching and clamping means comprise a member that bears aaginst said head, when said sleeve is in the thread clamping position, and which member includes second means for catching and severing the thread to form the beginning end of the thread to be wound.

9. The improvement claimed in claim 8, wherein said member defines a portion of a ring extending from said sleeve transversely of said axis; said second means defining an end of said ring; said head defining a face having therein said recess, said face cooperating with said member to clamp the thread between said member and said face when said sleeve is in the thread clamping position.

10. The improvement claimed in claim 2, in which one of said clamping surfaces comprises an axial end surface of said flange, the other of said clamping surfaces comprising an annular axial end surface of said head.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,304,712 12/ 1942 Siegenthaler 242-27 2,692,089 10/ 1954 Siegenthaler 242-27 2,718,360 9/1955 Joyce 24227 2,827,243 3/ 195 8 Cadle 242--27 X 2,969,196 I/ 1961 Kupper 24227 3,009,662 11/1961 Furst 242-27 FOREIGN PATENTS 910,838 11/1962 Great Britain.

STANLEY N. GILREATH, Primary Examiner. 

